Jiading stages dance drama Thousand-handed Goddess of Mercy

A dance drama named Thousand-handed Goddess of Mercy is put on at the Shanghai Poly Grand Theater in the city's Jiading district on May 25. [Photo/jiading.gov.cn]

A splendid dance drama named Thousand-handed Goddess of Mercy was staged at the Shanghai Poly Grand Theater in the city's Jiading district on May 25.

The dance drama was created after a dance of the same name performed by 21 mute and deaf dancers at the 2005 Spring Festival Eve gala show held by China Central Television (CCTV) became a hit. Both performances were directed by Zhang Jigang, a well-known Chinese Choreographer.

The dance drama took seven years to complete. It consists of 12 acts and tells the story of a princess who looks for a magical lotus flower to save her father who has been infected with a plague that spreads across the country. After enduring a range of hardship and difficult situations, the princess finds the magical flower.

However, upon returning and seeing her father's subjects, who are also afflicted by the disease, she questions her own sense of morality and she decides to give the flower to the people instead.

The drama intends to remind the audience about the importance of love and kindness. One official from the Shanghai Poly Grand Theater said the drama tells us that if you have faith in kindness and love, a thousand helping hands will come to your aid.

In addition to excellent dancing skills, stage design is of importance to the dance drama performance and advanced technologies and equipment were used to create a magnificent and eye-catching production.